Radiant temperature controlling device



Dec. 17, .1957 A.'O. DAVIS 2,316,713

RADIANT TEMPERATURE CONTROLLING YDEVICE Filed July 9. 1954 2 v Sheets-Sheet l I j l2 W F F I 38 HEATER 25 INVEN TOR. ARNOLD 0. DA 10.9,

T W22 v 1 his Attorney.

Dec. 17, 1957 A. 0. DAVIS RADIANT TEMPERATURE CONTROLLING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 9, 1954 8 4 A u (6 0 4 M .1 0 R m w H m R 1 R M n 8 AT wE E m w L l. M d m 4 R r 4 5 m .L

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United States Patent U RADIANT TEIVIPERATURE CONTROLLING DEVICE Arnold 0. Davis, Hobart, Ind.

Application July 9, 1954, Serial No. 442,393

3 Claims. (Cl. 237-50) This invention relates to a radiant temperature controlling device and more particularly to such a device for heating or cooling one or more rooms or enclosures. Most heating systems employ some form of convection or air circulation within a room to regulate temperature. This results in a wide temperature dilferential between the floor and ceiling and a very low humidity due to the excessively high temperature at the central heater. Radiant heating devices are sometimes used, but they also have various disadvantages. The baseboard type of radiant heaters have a very high temperature which creates convection currents of air and also are dangerous in that they may cause burns to anyone: touching them. Radiant heating devices having tubing embedded in the walls, ceiling or floor can only be installed when the building is con structed except at a very high cost. In case of leakage the cost of repair is very high. Steam heating systems for the corners of the ceilings have also been proposed, but these are expensive and have other disadvantages. That shown in the patent to Riehl No. 2,523,332, dated September 26, 1950, has the further disadvantage that it is not easily assembled and does not provide even heating throughout the room.

It is an object of my invention to provide a radiant heating panel which can be readily installed in new or old buildings and which will emit radiant heat energy to the floor area of the room from at least four directions and to wall areas from at least one direction.

Another object is to provide such apparatus which heats the room without any substantial circulation of air.

Still another object is to provide such apparatus which will absorb radiant heat energy from the room and also create cool air circulation.

These and other objects will be more apparent after referring to the following specification and attached drawin gs, in which:

Figure l is a top plan view of my radiant heating device as applied to more than one room with the structure of the room being shown in dash-dot lines;

Figure 2 is a view taken on the line IIII of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view taken on the line III--III of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a plan view of one specific type of construction of the radiant heating section of my invention;

Figure 5 is an elevation, partly in section, of an installation for a single room;

Figure 6 is a view taken on the line VI-VI of Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a sectional view of the heating panel of my invention in combination with an indirect lighting system; and

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a portion of the panel.

Referring more particularly to Figures 1 to 3 of the drawings, the reference numeral 2 indicates the Walls of rooms in which the radiant heating device of my invention is used. Each interior wall 2 has two plaster or wall board surfaces 4 connected by the usual studding 6. The usual wall plates 7 are provided at the top of the studding.

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In exterior walls one of the surfaces 4 will be replaced by clapboard or other outdoor covering. The ceiling of the rooms has the usual plaster wall surface 8 supported by the ceiling joists 10. A continuous radiant heating panel 12 is arranged around the upper corners of each room. Each panel 12 is preferably made up of a plurality of sections as described hereinafter. In cross section the heating panels 12 have a quarter round shape formed of a sheet metal top side 14 having one longitudinal edge connected to one longitudinal edge of a sheet metal back 16 with the other longitudinal edges being connected by a diagonal sheet metal portion 18 which forms the radiant heating surface. The top side 14, back side 16 and portion 18 are preferably formed from a single sheet bent into the shape shown. Other suitable material may be used in place of sheet metal. The diagonal portion 18 is shown as convex, but may be of various other shapes. Sheet insulation 20 is provided behind the top and back sides 14 and 16. Reflective foil 22 is preferably provided between the insulation and the plaster. Heat is supplied to the heating panels 12 through feed ducts 24 from a central heater 25 which is shown arranged above the ceiling 8. As shown in Figure 3, each main branch 'of the feed ducts 24 may supply hot air to two adjacent rooms. This is done by dividing the duct 24 into two branches 26 and 28. The duct 24 and branch ducts 26 and 28 are made of sheet metal 30 and may be covered with insulation 32 which in turn may be covered with reflective foil 34. A sheet metal dividing partition 36 is provided in the duct 24 to insure flow of hot air to the branch duct 26. The branch ducts 26 and 28 extend downwardly to their respective heating panels 12 with an opening 29 being cut in the top side 14 of the panel 12, insulation 20 and reflective foil 22 to permit passage of hot air to the heating panels 12. The hot air circulates in the panels 12 both ways from the branch duct connection and is discharged from the panels 12 at a point preferably half way around the room into a return duct 33. The panel 12 is connected to the return duct 38 by means of a connection 40 similar to the branch conduit or connection 28. It will be understood that the central heater 25 could be located in other positions than that shown.

Figure 4 shows a specific construction of the sections of the heating panels 12. This construction includes an inside corner section 42 having enlarged ends 44. A similar corner section is provided at each corner when the panel goes around a rectangular room. If there is a reverse bend in the room an outside corner section 46 as shown in Figure 4 is used, this having enlarged ends 48. A section 50L is received in the enlarged end 44 of the section 42 and a similar section 50R of reverse hand is received in the other end. Any number of similarsections 50L and 50R may be telescoped together depending upon the length of the room. A section 52L is. received in the last section 50L and a section 52R of reverse hand is received in the last section 50R. The sections 52R and 52L are enlarged at 54R and 54L, respectively, along their back and top, but the heating surface section terminates short of the enlarged ends 54R and 54L. A center section 56 having the opening 29 therein is received between the sections 52R and 52L. As best shown in Figure 8 metal strips 58 cover the joints between the heating surfaces of sections 52R and 56 and sections 52L and 56 and are fastened thereto by means of sheet metal screws 60.

The panels are installed as follows: The reflecting foil and insulation is first fastened to the walls and ceilings of the room to provide against heat loss from top side 14 and back side 16. The corner sections 42 and 46, if the latter is used, are then placed in position on the insulation and held in place by temporary fasteners.

The sections 50R, 50L, 52R and 52L are then slipped into place and held there by temporary fasteners. The section 56 is then cut to the desired length, slipped into position and held in place by the cover strips 58 and sheet metal screws 60. After one wall is completed the other walls are completed in the same manner. Trim mold 62 is then installed to permanently hold the panels in place, the temporary fasteners being removed as the mold 62 is installed. If desired, a sheet metal turning vane (not shown) may be installed in the corner sections. It will be seen that this construction enables the sections of the panels to expand and contract without damage to the panels or supports.

It will be seen that hot air from the central heater 25 passes through the ducts 24 to the heating panels 12 in the various rooms and after passing through the heating panels and giving up its heat to the room is returned through the ducts 38 to the heater 26. Valves may be installed in the ducts 24 and 38 to control the heat supplied to the various rooms. The heating panel emits radiant heat energy to the entire wall areas from at least one direction and to the exposed portion of the floor and to the occupants from at least four directions. The unit 25 may also be an air conditioning unit for supplying either heated or cooled air as desired.

Figures 5 and 6 show an installation for heating or cooling a single room. In this embodiment an opening 66 is cut in the ceiling 8 through the top side 14 of the panel 12. A compartment 68 is placed between a pair of joists 10. The compartment 68 has a sheet metal inner box 70, insulation 72 and reflective foil 74 surrounding the insulation 72. The compartment 68 contains a circulating fan 76 and controls 78. The fan 76 delivers air into an insulator tube 80 which contains a heating or cooling element 82. An electric heating element is shown but steam, hot water or cooling convectors can be used in place thereof. A bulkhead 84 surrounding the tube 80 insures positive air circulation through the fan 76 and heater 82. A small fresh air intake 86 is provided in compartment 68. The operation of the fan 76 and heater 80 is controlled from a thermostat 88 located in the room. Leads 90 connect the thermostat 88 to the controls 78. Leads 92 and 94 connect the controls 78 to the heating element 82 and fan motor 96, respectively. A switch for starting and stopping the electrical equipment may be mounted in a convenient location, such as with the thermostat 88. A thermocouple (not shown) may be mounted in tube 80 for assuring positive action of the controls 78.

The operation of this embodiment is as follows: As the temperature in the room falls to a set degree, the thermostat 88 through the controls 78 will start up the fan 76 and supply power to the heating element 82. The air blown by the fan passes around the heating element 82 and circulates through the heating panels 12 where its heat is given up to the room. The cooled air returns to the compartment 68 and the fan 76. This circulation keeps up until the temperature in the room rises to a set degree after which the thermostat 88 through the controls 78 shuts down the fan 76 and heater 82.

As shown in Figure 7 the heating panel 12 may be moved away from the wall 2 with the back of the panel being supported by a frame 98. The space behind the panel 12 forms a well 100 for indirect lighting units 102. The well 100 may be provided with reflective surfaced panels 104.

As used in the claims the term diagonal portion is meant to include various other shapes than that shown. For example, there may be a straight diagonal portion connecting the ends of the horizontal and vertical portions or there may be a downwardly extending vertical portion at the end of the main horizontal portion and a horizontal portion at the end of the main vertical portion connected by a straight or curved portion.

While several embodiments of my invention have been shown and described it will be apparent that other adaptations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A radiant temperature controlling device comprising a single uninterrupted substantially fluid-tight radiant heat transfer panel arranged around the top corners of a room, said panel including a plurality of relatively movable units telescoped together, each of said units having horizontal and vertical portions connected by a diagonal portion facing inwardly and downwardly into said room, at least one of said units being of said length that it can fit between the two adjacent units, means covering the joints between said last named unit and the adjacent units, and means for supplying a fluid to said panel at a temperature other than atmospheric.

2. A radiant temperature controlling device comprising a single uninterrupted substantially fluid-tight radiant heat transfer panel arranged around the top corners of a room, said panel including a plurality of relatively movable sheet metal units telescoped together, each of said units having horizontal and vertical portions connected by a diagonal portion facing inwardly and downwardly into said room, at least one of said units being of said length that it can fit between the two adjacent units, means covering the joints between said last named unit and the adjacent units, insulation between said horizontal portion and the ceiling of said room, insulation between said vertical portion and the walls of said room, and means for supplying a fluid to said panel at a temperature other than atmospheric.

3. A radiant temperature controlling device according to claim 2 in which the means for supplying a fluid to said panel comprises a heat transfer unit located in said panel, a chamber above said panel communicating with the inside of said panel, and a blower in said chamber for blowing air over said heat transfer unit.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,365,807 Weber Jan. 18, 1921 1,941,425 Young Dec. 26, 1933 2,523,332 Riehl Sept. 26, 1950 2,524,557 Austin Oct. 3, 1950 

